Communicating with the Moon is Getting Easier
Human interest in developing long-term settlements in space is increasing exponentially. Stations in low Earth orbit (LEO) have enabled people to live and work in space for the past several decades. With LEO habitation secure, the next avenue for continuing human presence in space comes down to one place—the Moon.
One of the challenges of seeking to establish a permanent outpost on the Moon is how to provide communications to support those on the lunar surface. Space stations in LEO rely on Earth-based communications and navigations capabilities, but outposts and other assets on the Moon cannot rely on the same capabilities because of the vast distances and line-of-sight challenges to places like the far side of the Moon.
The Parsec®, service from Crescent Space – a new company launched by Lockheed Martin – responds to this challenge.
Let's Get Connected
Crescent Space is an agile, commercial company that provides infrastructure-as-a-service for lunar missions, and its first official offering is a novel cislunar communications network called Parsec.
The Parsec service uses small satellites built by Lockheed Martin that work in unison to enable seamless connection between Earth and the people and assets on the lunar surface. These satellites act as an orbiting relay network that provides complete coverage to meet the needs of lunar missions.
The communication link between lunar assets and the Earth is completely controlled by the network to allow mission planners to focus on operations. Mission planners can have confidence that the network’s end-to-end communication services will deliver their data back to Earth securely and efficiently.
Let's Get Back to Base
Astronauts and other lunar resources can rely on the network’s navigation capabilities to keep missions on target and even support them when courses need to change. The interoperable nodes connected to the network act as a lunar positioning system, informing those on the ground of their exact location, hidden hazards and even how to get back to base.
Knowing before going is critical to the safety of crewed missions and future astronauts can rest easy as the service will be in place before they take their first steps on the Moon. Crescent anticipates that the first communication nodes will be in place by 2025, with additional nodes being built out over the following years.
Let's Get Technical
The technologies supporting the Parsec line of spacecraft are already in place:
- Curio™ SmallSat bus, currently being built for NASA’s Janus and Lunar Trailblazer missions, enables a modular and capable platform for lunar missions.
- The SmartSat™ software framework enables on-orbit reconfigurability and mission flexibility.
- The COMPASS/Horizon™ products allow for automated mission planning and satellite command and control.
- Supporting networks for deep space missions must grow along with humankind’s aspirations to become an interplanetary species. Success in the next step in lunar exploration depends on finding our way and staying connected.
In the future, Crescent is also designed to expand its services to offer additional capabilities that enable more science, exploration and commerce in deep space.